Svante e



(No Model.)

S E. LILLJAQ ATTAGH'MENT FOR VEHICLE BOOTS.

Patented June 30, 1896.

.FIG.1.

' max M, EUTDUTHQWASHINGTUNJ Cf UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE;

SVANTE E. LILLJA, OF MOLINE, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO THE D. M. SECHLER CARRIAGE COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

ATTACHMENT FOR VEHICLE-BOOTS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 563,045, dated June 30, 1896.

Application filed April 30, 1896. Serial No. 589,761. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, SvANrE E. LILLJA, a citizen of the United States, residing at Moline, in the county of Rock Island and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and usef ul Improvements in Attachments to Vehicle- Boots; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, reference being had to the annexed drawings, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to those spring-controlled attachments employed for retaining the covering-frame of a vehicle-boot either in its open or closed position; and my improvement comprises a lever having a lateral bend, against which a spring constantly bears, one end of said lever being pivoted to a fixture near the boot, while the other end of said lever is connected to the covering-frame by a rod, as hereinafter more fully described.

In the annexed drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical section of a vehicle-boot to which my attachment is applied, the covering-frame of said boot being shown in its normal or closed position. Fig. 2 is another similar section, but showing the covering-frame in its open position. Fig. 3 is an enlarged horizontal section through the open attachment. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the bent lever detached from the vehicle.

A represents one side of avehicle-boot, and B is a vertical post, which stifiens said side and assists it in supporting the seat 0. Pivoted to this post, or to any other suitable fixture of the vehicle-body, is a light lever including three parts D E F, of which members two terminate with eyes 61 ffor a purpose that will presently appear. This lever is preferably made of a single piece of wire, and its free portion D is somewhat longer than its pivoted member F, these two parts D F bein g united together by a lateral bend E. Furthermore, the portion D of the lever is usually longer than the part F, and the connectingbend E is about horizontal and practically at a right angle with reference to said part F. Again, the length of the bend is about equal to the thickness of the post 13, as seen in Fig. 3, to which post the lever is pivoted by a screw or bolt G, passing through the eye f.

H is a rod connecting the other eye, d, with a frame I, which latter is hinged to the vehicle-body at J, and may have a suitable covering secured upon it.

K is a spring fastened to the rear side of the post B and having its yielding portion constantly in contact with the bend E, or, as seen in Fig. 3, with an antifriction-roller L, carried by said bend.

In applying my attachment to a carriage or buggy or other wheeled vehicle provided with a boot, the various parts of said attachment must be so arranged as to enable the spring K to be equally effective, both when the frame I is open and closed.

By referring to Fig. 1 it will be noticed that when the frame is closed, the entire lever D E F is swung down to a position below its pivot G, and is held in this position by the pressure of spring K against the lateral bend E of said lever. jolting or vibration of the vehicle will not accidentally open the frame and expose the contents of the boot, but access can be readily had to the latter at any time by simply grasping said frame and exerting sufficient force against it to overcome the stress of the spring. When this is done and the frame thrown wide open, the various parts of the attachment assume the positions seen in Fig. 2, reference to which illustration shows that the entire lever D E F is now swung up above its pivot G. This illustration shows also that the bend E of the lever is forced against the rear side of the post B by the pressure of spring K, which stress of said spring is sufficient to overcome the natural tendency of the frame to close down on the boot. The action of the spring against the raised lever is more clearly seen in Fig. 8, although a sleeve or antifriotion-roller L is here shown as bearing against the rear side of the post. It is to be understood, however, that this sleeve is not an essential part of my invention, and may be omitted at pleasure. Finally, it is evident Consequently, any vertical the devices shown may be applied to either ing against said bend, in the manner deor both sides of a vehicle-boot. scribed, and for the purpose stated. 10

I claim as my invention In testimony whereof I afiix my signature In combination with a vehicle-boot having in presence of two witnesses. 5 a covering-frame hinged to it, a lever pivoted SVANTE E. LILLJ A.

to a fixture of the vehicle, and provided with Witnesses: a lateral bend, a rod connecting the free end FRANK H. GLENSIN G, of this lever to said frame, and a spring bear- MoRRIs GEISMAR. 

